


the superstars sucked into the super massive

by neenswrites



Series: Kenma Ship Week [1]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Vampire, Biting, Implied Sexual Content, Love At First Bite - Freeform, M/M, Mild Blood, Tasty Tension, but the beginnings of it are pretty much everywhere, it doesn't happen in this fic, pre-bokuakuroken
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-27
Updated: 2020-07-27
Packaged: 2021-03-06 06:21:48
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,376
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25538710
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/neenswrites/pseuds/neenswrites
Summary: Kenma swallowed once before he pressed his lips against Bokuto's neck. He wasn’t sure if it was instinct or something else, but he tilted his head and bit exactly where he knew Bokuto’s vein was.A lot of things happened in that moment. Bokuto’s grip got just a little tighter on Kenma’s arms. Kenma’s knees went a little weak, and he dipped down just a bit. Bokuto leaned down to accommodate the height difference.However, Kenma noticed none of that. The only thing he noticed was the taste of Bokuto’s blood.It tastedsweet.-After a horrible turn of events, Kozume Kenma finds himself turned into a vampire. Luckily for him, he has some amazing - and unexpected - people to help him through it.
Relationships: Akaashi Keiji & Kozume Kenma, Bokuto Koutarou/Kozume Kenma, Kozume Kenma & Kuroo Tetsurou
Series: Kenma Ship Week [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1850572
Comments: 17
Kudos: 107
Collections: Kenma Ship Week 2020





	the superstars sucked into the super massive

**Author's Note:**

> this is dedicated to the anon who requested more bokken vampire au! if you want to see the thread that started it all, it's right here!
> 
> also thank you to the brilliant [christy](https://twitter.com/kodzukuro) for beta reading for me, she's the best!!

When Kenma opened his eyes, the first thing he noticed was that everything was tinged red. He blinked a couple of times, but the color refused to fade. It was so strong he could barely even make out what he was looking at.

The next two things he noticed was how thirsty he was, and how his entire body seemed to be screaming out in pain.

“Oh, you’re awake.” Kenma’s body tensed at the voice, but that just caused him even more pain. He heard gentle shushing, and then what he assumed was a man came to his bedside table. “Relax. You’re safe here, okay?”

Kenma tried nodding but he was already starting to lose consciousness again. He felt something press against his lips, and then his teeth began to ache.

He blacked out again before he could figure out why.

-

When Kenma opened his eyes for the second time, nothing was red and there was a man named Akaashi Keiji at his bedside.

He explained to Kenma that he’d found him bleeding out in an alleyway after what was likely an attack from another vampire. How Kenma had been on the brink of death when he asked Akaashi to just turn him. How Akaashi had been reluctant but Kenma had stared him down until he felt he had no choice. How Kenma had promptly passed out after Akaashi successfully turned him.

“It’s a wonder you survived the transformation given your condition,” Akaashi said bluntly. Kenma just nodded, unsure of what he could even say. 

He’d never had a desire to be a vampire before. They were hated and hunted, and now Kenma would be subject to that as well. But he knew some of them could be good, and he knew he hadn’t wanted to die.

“If you regret it, I wouldn’t hold it against you.” Akaashi’s gaze was trained on his knees, and Kenma noticed for the first time how tired the man looked. “You were dying and desperate, and I understand if I may have made a mistake.”

Kenma’s eyes dropped to his hands. He’d been pale before, but his skin almost seemed ghostly now. His nails had faded of all color, and when Kenma pressed his hands together there wasn’t any warmth at all.

He didn’t remember much of what Akaashi had told him. He did remember being jumped on his way home from the corner store. He remembered pain, fear, and regret. Maybe it was that last feeling that drove him to ask Akaashi to do what he did - to change him into a being so hated that there was a worldwide policy that permitted the extermination of them on sight. He wondered what his parents would think, what Kuroo would think, how much his life was about to change. 

He looked up at Akaashi then. If his life changed at all, it was only because Akaashi had been there to save it. 

“I don’t regret it.”

-

“Kenma!” 

Kenma had barely closed his apartment door behind him before he was being practically tackled in a hug.

The first thing that registered wasn’t the warmth of Kuroo against him. It wasn’t his arms that were crushing him so tightly that he would have been wheezing if he was still human. It wasn’t the clothes Kuroo was wearing, or the way he seemed to be trembling all over.

It was the smell of him.

Kenma felt the ache in his teeth he’d only felt once before, and pushed Kuroo away in a blind panic. He brought his hand up to cover his mouth, and tried to calm himself down. Kuroo stumbled a few steps away, looking both shocked and hurt, until his eyes locked on something behind Kenma.

“Who the hell are you?”

Akaashi stepped in front of Kenma, and Kuroo’s face immediately darkened. “My name is Akaashi Keiji, and Kozume-san - ”

“I’ve never heard of you before,” Kuroo interrupted. He reached for Kenma’s wrist, and Kenma wanted to resist, still scared of his reaction from earlier. But he remembered how hurt Kuroo had looked when he’d pushed him away. So he let Kuroo gently pull him to his side, and made sure to clench his jaw shut. Kuroo turned to look back at Akaashi. “Are you the reason he’s been missing for the past five days?”

Five days? Kenma tilted his chin up to look at Kuroo’s face. He had bags under his eyes, his hair looked even more unkempt than usual, and he could now tell the trembling from earlier wasn’t his imagination.

A stab of guilt went through Kenma’s chest.

“Kuroo-san,” Akaashi said carefully, and Kuroo blinked back at him in surprise. “Kenma’s told me about you. I think it’s best if we all sat down for this.”

Kuroo stared at Akaashi for a long time, before he looked down at Kenma. He seemed to notice for the first time the hand Kenma still had pressed against his mouth, and when he reached up to pull it away Kenma couldn’t help the way his eyes clenched shut.

He couldn’t see Kuroo’s reaction, but he could feel his fangs protruding from his mouth, could feel the way Kuroo went still at the sight of them.

Kenma couldn’t see his reaction, but he didn’t need to see to hear the absolute heartbreak in Kuroo’s voice when he said, “Oh, Kenma…”

-

From that point on, things happened very quickly.

Kenma was too new a vampire to be left alone. He would either bite someone due to his lack of control, or be found out and staked before he could even blink.

So Akaashi suggested Kenma move in with him. Kuroo was predictably resistant.

“You expect Kenma to live with a complete stranger,” Kuroo said drily, and he did have a point. The idea of living with Akaashi, a man he barely knew, was nerve-wracking. But it wasn’t like he had another choice. “I don’t understand why he can’t stay here, and you can come by from time to time - ”

“No,” Kenma said sharply. Kuroo looked down at him, but Kenma refused to meet his gaze. “I...Kuro, earlier today...when I first saw you…” Kenma felt stinging in his eyes, completely disgusted with himself. “I...I almost bit you then. I don’t think it’s safe if it’s just me and you here.”

Kenma stared down at his knees and tried to will away his tears. When he was first coming to terms with his new life, he’d been okay with most of it. He would need to be in hiding for the most part, but that wasn’t much different from his life before. He could stay indoors, keep his remote job as a coder, and just have Akaashi teach him how to control himself.

He knew he was oversimplifying it, but that had been the best he could do at the time. But now, faced with the reality of what he was losing -  _ who _ he could be losing - he was suddenly feeling much less objective about the whole thing.

“Okay.” Kuroo’s arm wrapped around him, and he was surprised to feel him pull him into his chest. “Kenma lives with you, and I come too.”

Kenma whipped his head to look up at Kuroo with wide eyes, but Kuroo was staring determinedly at Akaashi. Surprisingly, Akaashi didn’t look opposed to the idea.

“Actually,” he said hesitantly. “I have another roommate - a human roommate. I think having you there, Kuroo-san, could be good for him. And Kozume-san, of course.”

Kenma had resisted. He hadn’t even known about this other human roommate, and now he was going to have to worry about hurting two people while he was like this.

“I won’t come if you don’t want me to,” Kuroo said as they sat in Kenma’s room, packing his things. They were settled on opposite sides of the room, Kenma on his bed and Kuroo by the open door. “This is...a lot to deal with, and I don’t want to make it any harder for you.”

“It’s not that I don’t want you there.” Kenma was emptying his nightstand, and paused as he pulled out an old picture of him and Kuroo. “I just can’t trust myself right now, and I don’t want to hurt you.”

Kuroo hummed, and Kenma shifted his gaze to him only to see Kuroo looking at him already. “I know the risks Kenma. I know it’s dangerous.” Kuroo shrugged then, and a small smile graced his face. “I still want to come. It’d drive me crazy knowing you were going through all this without anyone you knew with you.”

There wasn’t really anything else Kenma could say to that. Well, there was, but nothing that would be believable to either of them. 

So he and Kuroo had packed up their apartment - they kept what was necessary and sold what wasn’t. Kuroo handled things with their landlord, and then just a few days later they were following Akaashi back into the apartment that Kenma had woken up in just over a couple of weeks ago.

Only this time there was a noticeable difference.

“Bokuto?”

“Kuroo? Kenma?”

“Oh, you all know each other,” Akaashi said, placing the box he’d been carrying on the ground. “That certainly makes things easier.”

Kenma didn’t know how to properly process the fact that Bokuto Koutarou was currently before his eyes. He was Kuroo’s friend - the two having met while Kuroo was still in college, and staying close friends since then. He visited their apartment often, either to just hang out or invite Kuroo along with him for some self-described ‘adventure’.

He was the absolute last person he expected to be Akaashi’s human roommate.

“Wait, these two were the new roommates you were talking about?” Bokuto asked, standing from the couch. “But that doesn’t make sense…”

“It’s a long story,” Kuroo said. He sighed, but only a moment later he was smiling at Bokuto and stepping over to pull him into a hug. “You have no idea how happy I am right now.”

“This is why you never invited Kuro back to your apartment,” Kenma said, things finally clicking into place. He hadn’t spoken to Bokuto much before, preferring to hole up in his room whenever Kuroo had him over, but he came over so often it was impossible for them to not know each other at all.

“Yeah,” Bokuto said, pulling back from the embrace to give Kuroo a sympathetic look. “I’m sorry bro, but I couldn’t risk it with Akaashi. You would’ve been fine, but you could’ve reported him or - ”

“I get it,” Kuroo interrupted before he paused with a frown. “Well, I don’t get it. Not yet at least. But you don’t have anything to apologize for.”

Bokuto beamed at Kuroo, and a large part of Kenma felt at ease. He was happy that Kuroo would have Bokuto, that the two would have each other through whatever the hell the future had in store for them.

They continued moving in, the process made much easier with Bokuto’s help, and after many, many,  _ many _ rounds of debate, they decided on how the sleeping arrangements would work in the two-bedroom apartment.

Bokuto and Kuroo would share a room, Akaashi would stay in his own room, and Kenma would stay out in the living room. Kuroo still looked unsatisfied, and Akaashi still insisted that Kenma take his room, but Kenma was fine.

He couldn’t room with a near-stranger like Akaashi, refused to room with a human like Kuroo, and Bokuto was automatically out since he was a combination of both stranger and human. And while Akaashi’s room would be comfier, he couldn’t take it from Akaashi after everything the man had already done for him.

So they settled. Akaashi came and went from the apartment at random intervals, provided Kenma with blood bags, and taught him about what it really meant to be a vampire. Kuroo talked and supported him, but from a physical distance the two had never had to deal with before.

Bokuto...was there. He often left the apartment with Kuroo during the day, and ate dinner with them all at night. Kenma didn’t know if this changed anything from their barely-there friendship, so he simply didn’t bother trying to get closer. 

Kenma was a vampire. He drank blood, avoided going outside during the day, and stayed up most of the night. He also played his games, continued working, and spent most of his days on the couch.

Life went on.

-

Weeks later, Akaashi approached him one evening. Bokuto and Kuroo were out somewhere, and Kenma was working at the desk he’d bought for himself a couple of weeks ago. 

“There’s rumour of a vampire friendly colony not too far from here,” Akaashi said quietly stared at the curtained window. “I don’t have any way to confirm it’s existence, and it could just be a trap set by hunters to lure us out...”

“But you want to go,” Kenma finished, pushing his laptop away from himself and turning to look at Akaashi. In these few weeks they’ve gotten closer at a rate Kenma hadn’t expected. He learned that Akaashi had no clue who turned him, had to figure everything out for himself, had turned to Bokuto because they’d known each other since high school and he trusted him more than anyone.

He also learned that something had happened between the two that caused that relationship to become the strained mess it was now.

“Yes, I do.” Akaashi still wasn’t looking at Kenma, so he couldn’t see the way Kenma was frowning at him.

“You said yourself that this could be a trap,” Kenma said. “Why risk that?”

“You haven’t been turned as long as I have Kozume-san.” Akaashi finally turned to look at him, and Kenma was surprised to see the bitterness in his gaze. “Having to hide from the sun by day, and being constantly hunted at night. My entire life is this two-bedroom apartment, and I can’t stand it any longer.”

Kenma didn’t understand completely, but he could recognize that there was a difference between staying in because you wanted to and staying in because you had no choice but to, much like a prisoner. If he thought about it for too long, his skin would start to feel stretched tight, so he just avoided that train of thought.

He doubted Akaashi could avoid it any longer.

“Where’s the colony at?” Kenma asked after a long pause. Akaashi licked his lips nervously, and Kenma’s eyes narrowed. 

“It...may be in Sendai.”

Kenma straightened in his seat, and looked at Akaashi incredulously. “Akaashi, I can’t make that sort of trip.”

If they had been human, it wouldn’t have been a problem. They could simply drive up, maybe take a long train ride with a couple of transfers if they needed to.

But as vampires, it was a whole different story. Driving there was completely out of the question. If they drove during the day, there’d be no possible way for them to both avoid the sun and avoid suspicion. If they drove during the dead of night, they’d be stopped at every checkpoint.

Vampires had to find other ways of getting around. 

It was usually by foot. Vampires who’d lived long enough built up incredible stamina, speed, and strength. Others even gained incredible abilities that only caused humans to fear them more. Akaashi himself had only been a vampire for a few years, but Kenma had seen his speed enough to know that it was inhuman. 

Kenma on the other hand had only been a vampire for a couple of weeks. Not only had he not gained any abilities, but he was weaker now than he’d been when he was human. He was still adjusting to blood, and was always tired despite never even needing sleep.

He’d be caught within the first hour if they tried making the journey to Sendai. 

“I know, and again, it could just be a trap.” Akaashi’s eyes flitted away then, and Kenma had a by feeling about where this was going. “Which is why I’ll be going to see if it’s true first on my own.”

Kenma stood up from his desk to stand directly in front of Akaashi. “That’s just as much a death sentence as me going.”

“I know a way to get there that avoids any major roads or checkpoints.” Akaashi said lowly, his eyes trained resolutely on his feet. “It’ll nearly triple the length of the trip, but it’ll be safe.”

“It’s never safe for a vampire to travel alone,” Kenma said bluntly. Akaashi frowned, but Kenma was more caught in the way his shoulders seemed to slump. He bit the inside of cheek before grabbing Akaashi’s wrist and blurting out, “Take Kuro with you.”

Akaashi looked up at him in complete disbelief. “Kuroo-san would never agree.”

Akaashi wasn’t exactly wrong. 

“I don’t understand why it has to be me,” Kuroo said as he and Kenma sat in his shared room with Bokuto. They were both on the bed, but at different ends, and Kenma felt the distance like an ache. “Why can’t Bokuto go?”

Kenma shook his head. “Akaashi and Bokuto...something happened between them. You had to have noticed too.”

Kuroo sighed. “Yeah, I noticed. I tried bringing it up with Bo, but he wouldn’t spill.” Kuroo ran his hand through his hair, and fixed Kenma with a bemused look. “There’s no way they’ll miraculously move past that, huh?”

Kenma shook his head again, this time more slowly. “Kuro,” he said carefully, waiting until Kuroo was looking up at him. “I’m surprised you’re not more against this idea in general.”

Kuroo furrowed his brow in surprise. “What are you talking about? From what it sounds like, this colony is the best chance you’ve got at living a normal life.” 

Kenma clenched his fist around the blankets he was sitting on. He knew what he was about to ask was incredibly selfish, but he was speaking before he could stop himself. “Would you...consider staying there too?”

He kept his eyes trained on the wall, unable to face Kuroo as shame crept up on him. It was because of this that he missed when Kuroo reached across to pull at Kenma’s hand so that he wasn’t twisting at the blanket anymore.

“I thought you knew that was a given.” Kenma whipped his head back at Kuroo only to find him looking at Kenma already, a small smile on his face. “We’re in this together, okay?”

Kenma felt too choked up to say anything, so he just nodded. Kuroo’s smile widened before he pulled his hand away from Kenma’s with a sigh. “Guess this means I’ve got to spend the next two weeks with Akaashi without wanting to actually stab him.”

“He’s really not that bad,” Kenma mumbled as he pulled his knees up to his chest. “I think you just provoke him more than anything.”

Kuroo shrugged. “Better that than reminding him constantly that he’s the reason your entire life got flipped on its head.”

Kenma frowned. “It was that, or die, Kuro.”

“Yeah, I know, I’m not mad at you,” he said soothingly, and Kenma pursed his lips. “I just...can’t imagine Akaashi and I ever getting along.”

Kenma let a beat of silence pass, before the ghost of a smirk appeared on his lips. “Well, you at least have to admit that he’s very pretty.”

“Yeah, if you like the cold, grouchy type,” Kuroo said as he rolled his eyes, but Kenma caught the light pink on his cheeks and the smirk on his face widened. He opened his mouth to tease Kuroo more, but Kuroo spoke before he could. “I’ll go. And if it turns out this colony isn’t just a trap, I’ll go with you again too.”

Kenma wished there was a better way for him to show his appreciation for Kuroo. That he could hug him or even hold his hand for longer than a couple of seconds. As it was, he offered him a smile he hoped captured everything he felt.

He felt his entire body relax at Kuroo’s answering smile. He got it.

-

Fun.

That was how Bokuto had described how these next few weeks were going to go.

“I mean you’re indoors all the time right?” He’d asked practically the second the door had closed behind Kuroo and Akaashi, slapping Kenma on the back with much too much force. Kenma glared at him, and Bokuto smiled sheepishly at him. “Sorry! But you have to know some fun things we could do while Akaashi and Kuroo are gone.”

Kenma blinked and wondered if Bokuto had the attention span for any of his games. “I mostly just work,” Kenma said before he frowned. There was no way he was going to be able to work the same job if they moved to Sendai. 

Whatever. He’d think about that another time.

“Well, you can’t work  _ all  _ the time.” Kenma frowned at Bokuto’s insistence. While Bokuto wasn’t wrong, he had an idea that they had very different ideas of the word fun. “And when you’re not working, you and I can...play games! You like to do that right?”

“...yes,” Kenma admitted begrudgingly. “But I’m tired now. And you should get some sleep too.”

At least Kenma figured that was true. Kuroo and Akaashi had needed to leave in the middle of the night. Getting out of the city was going to be the hardest part about the trip, and if they ran into hunters, they would need Akaashi able to fight without fear of getting burned. 

So they’d waited until the moon was high in the sky, and set off. Akaashi and Kenma had hugged for the first time in their short friendship, and Bokuto and Kuroo had stayed locked in an embrace until Akaashi forcibly pulled Kuroo off of Bokuto. Kuroo had paused at Kenma, before he simply rested his hand on his head with a small smile. It was more than enough.

He wasn’t sure if Akaashi had said anything to Bokuto.

And then they were gone, leaving Kenma with the person he’d interacted with the least in the apartment.

It wasn’t that he disliked Bokuto. He was louder than Kenma was used to, but he was always well-intentioned, and Kenma could appreciate that. He seemed like the type of person Kenma could be himself around without judgement.

Back before….everything, when he’d used to frequent his and Kuroo’s apartment, Bokuto would never call Kenma out for spending most of his time in his own room, he and Kuroo and had been perfectly content to stay in the living room themselves, laughing and talking through the night. The few times he left his room to grab a snack or some water, Bokuto was always friendly and usually invited Kenma to join them. And every time Kenma said no, he brushed it off without making Kenma feel guilty about it.

So it wasn’t that he didn’t know Bokuto was a good guy. He just didn’t know how to interact with him.

Which was maybe why Kenma was taking advantage of the fact Akaashi had said he could sleep in his room while he was away, and was holing himself up in his bed. It was a bit strange at first to be in the same bed he’d woken up in after he’d first been turned, but it was better than forcing awkward conversation with Bokuto.

Unfortunately the thirst creeping up his throat meant Kenma wasn’t going to be able to avoid the kitchen for very long. 

Maybe Bokuto would be gone. He and Kuroo usually spent their days out doing who knew what.

Dragging himself out of bed, Kenma softly padded to his door, being sure to open and close it as quietly behind him. If Bokuto was in his room, he didn’t want to accidentally alert him that he was out of his room.

He only made it a couple of steps before Bokuto’s head popped out from behind the couch. 

“Kenma! You’re finally up!”

“Bokuto,” Kenma said, trying not to let his disappointment show too much. “I’m...surprised you aren’t out.”

“Well, it’s Saturday, so it's not like I have to work.” Kenma blinked. Work. For whatever reason, the idea of Bokuto at some mundane job didn’t sit quite right with him. “And I already went to the gym this morning!”

Kenma nodded, shifting slightly from foot to foot. He had no idea what to say - which was exactly what he’d wanted to avoid. 

He was mercifully saved from having to say anything by a knock on the door. The knock itself sounded strange, and it took Kenma a moment before he remembered what Akaashi had said about having a ‘source’ that would deliver blood to Kenma while he was gone. 

“I got it,” he said as he saw Bokuto stand from the couch. However, the mere thought of blood was enough to get Kenma at the door in less than a second. He opened the door and found no one there, but his grip tightened on the knob when he saw the large, plain paper bag on the doorstep. 

Kenma licked his lips. 

This had been another point of concern for the trip. Akaashi was going to need as many blood bags as possible, which meant that they had to give him as many as possible. They’d even rationed a few of them so Akaashi would have even more when he left.

It also meant Kenma was more irritable. He frowned. Maybe he’d been unfairly taking that out on Bokuto.

Ever the procrastinator, he decided that he could think about that later.

Kenma grabbed the unmarked bag and closed the door behind him. 

“Who was it?” Bokuto called out from his spot on the couch.

“Akaashi’s source,” Kenma replied, peering into the bag in his hands. There were enough blood bags in there to last him the week. He was grateful. He hadn’t been sure he could trust when Akaashi said there would be a new shipment every Monday, and had been rationing just in case.

He walked into the kitchen, pulled out a blood bag, and put the rest into the fridge. By the time he grabbed a cup from the cupboard, Bokuto was in the kitchen as well. Kenma nearly startled at the sight of him.

“Yes?” Kenma asked, confused by Bokuto’s presence. 

“Akaashi never lets me see this,” Bokuto said as he hopped on the kitchen counter. “I’ve always wanted to see.”

“You want to see me microwave blood?” Kenma looked closely at the instructions Akaashi had left him, and added water to the cup before picking up the bag. “I’m about to open the bag, so you might want to leave if you don’t like the smell of blood.”

Bokuto just smiled at Kenma and he sighed before he emptied the contents of the bad into the cup. He frowned at the smell, but mixed it anyway before putting the cup in the microwave. He looked at the instructions one more time before entering the time, and then he leaned against the fridge as he waited.

“What was that face for?” Bokuto asked, reminding Kenma he was there. “I thought you’d be used to the smell of blood by now?”

“I’ve never had to do this before - Akaashi usually takes care of it,” Kenma confessed with a small shrug. He bit his lip before continuing, “But that’s not the reason I frowned.”

Bokuto titled his head at him, and Kenma tried coming up with the best way to explain it without coming across creepy. “Well, it kind of has to do with the scent? Blood has a different scent depending on the person it came from, and you can usually tell what it’s going to taste like based on the smell.” Kenma looked at the microwave again, and his frown deepened. “This one doesn’t seem like it’s going to taste all that great.”

“That’s so weird.” Bokuto scrunched his nose at the thought. “Why does that happen?”

Kenma shrugged. “I don’t even know where these blood bags come from. I wouldn’t be surprised if some of the people were from less than savory backgrounds.”

The microwave beeped then, and Kenma straightened up to open its door. The smell of warm blood met him, and his fangs automatically extended. He wished he could control them like how Akaashi was able to.

He brought the cup up to his lips, and only took a small sip before he realized Bokuto was staring at him intently.

“Yes?” Kenma asked again, completely confused by Bokuto's new vested interest in him. 

“Well, what does it taste like?” Bokuto asked expectantly, and Kenma blinked in surprise. He hadn’t expected Bokuto to become that interested in the conversation.

He took another sip, this time paying more attention. “It tastes bitter,” Kenma said slowly. “Not in the way a lemon is bitter, but more like coffee. And it tastes kind of stale.”

Bokuto made a face. “I thought blood was supposed to taste good? Like, isn’t that the point?”

Kenma shrugged again, exiting the kitchen and not surprised when Bokuto hopped off the counter and followed him. “Most of it tastes okay, I guess. Really it’s more like real food tastes disgusting, and blood is the only thing I can stomach.”

Unbidden, the memory of when Kenma first smelled Kuroo entered Kenma’s mind, and he faltered as his mouth began to water. He shouldn’t think about that. He was never going to drink from him - never going to drink from _ anyone _ for that matter. 

“There’s got to be blood that tastes good.” Kenma settled carefully onto the couch, and Bokuto hopped on beside him. Bokuto furrowed his brow and brought his hand up to his chin. “What type of person would have blood that tastes like stale coffee?”

Kenma paused. “What do you mean by type?”

“You know, like what were they  _ like _ .” Bokuto looked very deep in thought for something they’d never have the answer to. “What did they do? What did they like? Were they super cool or super mean?”

Kenma could not fathom why Bokuto would want to know this information. But he still felt bad for the way he’d been avoiding the poor guy, so he figured he could play along. “Probably a broke, stressed college student.”

He didn’t know how the taste of blood worked for vampires, had no clue if it had anything to do with diet or lifestyle, but it made sense to him. He remembered all the unfinished cups of coffee he had left at his desk pulling all-nighters when he was still in college, and he was sure there had to be some sort of...compensation for giving blood. A broke college student just made sense.

“Yeah, I can see that,” Bokuto said before a large grin spread across his face. “Or what if it’s like an overworked farmer.”

Kenma wasn’t sure if it was because the words were so unexpected or because they were so ridiculous, but he let out a loud snort before he could help himself.

Bokuto looked absolutely delighted.

“So you agree?” Bokuto asked, leaning closer to Kenma on the couch. Kenma rolled his eyes but couldn’t suppress the small, amused smile on his face.

“I wouldn’t go that far,” Kenma said. He took another sip from his cup before looking quizzically at Bokuto. “How’d you come up with that?”

“Well, they could be someone who farms coffee beans,” Bokuto started as he looked up in thought. “But farmers don’t get to have lots of what they plant, right? Because they have to sell it? So they probably only got the coffee no one ever wanted to buy, which was probably the stale leftovers.”

Kenma blinked at him, impressed. That actually sort of made sense. In a Bokuto kind of way. 

“So do you agree now?” Bokuto asked, a smug grin on his face. Kenma studied Bokuto for a few seconds before placing his glass on the coffee table and sliding down to sit on the floor.

“Beat me in a round of Mario Kart, and I’ll think about it.”

-

They continued this little game for the next couple of days. 

“It tastes like onigiri? That’s weird. I haven't had anything that tasted like actual food before.”

“So then a Family Mart employee who only eats onigiri and wants to quit his job but he’s too scared to take that risk.”

“....Or just a chef, Bokuto.”

-

“Today is very watery. I’m sure I added the right amount of water though...”

“Maybe they were a health nut, and only ever drank water.”

“Or maybe I put too much water.”

“Whoa, what if they’re some famous athlete! Athletes have to drink lots of water, Kenma.”

“Or maybe I put too much water.”

-

“It just tastes salty. Really salty. I’m going to try adding more water to this, what the hell?”

“Maybe it’s a mermaid!”

“A  _ what _ ?”

“A mermaid! You know, half fish, half human. It would explain the salt.”

“That’s ridiculous.” 

“Kenma, you’re a  _ vampire _ .”

“...”

-

It was on the fifth day that things took an unexpected turn. 

Kenma should’ve seen it coming when he opened the blood bag. The smell that came from it was enough to make him nearly toss the contents down the sink. It smelled absolutely foul, like someone had burned something and left it to sit out. 

“Whoa, that bad?” Bokuto asked with a frown. Kenma guessed the expression on his face must’ve revealed at least that much. “Why don’t you just get a different one?”

“Can’t,” Kenma said, pinching his nose as he emptied the bag into a cup. It would smell better after he warmed it up. “I have exactly one bag per day, and we don’t know for sure when Akaashi and Kuroo will get back. I’m not going to waste anything just in case.”

Akaash had said that he had arranged so that Kenma would be delivered a week’s supply every Saturday, but Kenma had caught the slight hesitation in his voice. There was no guarantee when it came to this. 

Kenma wasn’t going to take any risks. 

Bokuto opened his mouth like he wanted to say something, but hesitated. Kenma furrowed his brow in confusion. He hadn’t seen Bokuto hesitate before. Before he could give it further thought, the microwave beeped. 

Kenma opened it, and was relieved to find that the blood did in fact smell much less awful. “It’s fine now,” Kenma said, more for Bokuto’s sake than anything else, as he turned to face him. He brought the cup to his lips and took a long sip.

And then promptly dropped the cup.

Distantly, he registered the sound of the cup clattering against the kitchen floor and the loud cry of Bokuto made, but he could barely focus on that. He stumbled to the sink, yanking the handle of the faucet up, and cupping his hands under the water to get it into his mouth and rinse the taste of whatever the hell he’d drank out of his mouth.

Because whatever that was, it wasn’t blood. It was close, close enough that his nose had been tricked, that his eyes had been fooled by its color and consistency. But his tongue knew better. 

“Kenma?” Kenma felt a gentle hand on his back, and he was finally pulled back from his thoughts. He blinked rapidly and realized there were tears falling from his eyes. Wiping at them, he turned the faucet off and took a step away from the sink.

“Kenma,” Bokuto repeated, this time now at his side. “Are you okay?”

“Sorry,” Kenma said softly, sure Bokuto must've been freaked out by his reaction. “I...whatever was in that bag wasn’t blood.”

“It’s not?” Bokuto said, looking at the floor behind him. Kenma followed his gaze until he saw the half-empty cup lying on its side, a puddle of not-blood on the ground next to it. Kenma frowned. He was going to have to clean that up.

“It’s not,” Kenma confirmed with a sigh as he turned to look for a towel to clean the spill with. He was going to have to buy Akaashi a new one. It was only when he stepped away did he realize Bokuto’s hand was still on his back, and was now sliding up to grip firmly on Kenma’s shoulder.

“Well, what about you?” Kenma looked blankly at Bokuto, and he huffed in frustration. “What are you going to drink? Weren’t you just saying you couldn’t double up on bags.”

Kenma frowned. He’d been trying to avoid thinking about that.

“I’ll manage,” Kenma said. He’d done it before, when he’d been forced to ration his blood before Akaashi left. 

He made short work of the mess he’d made, before opening the fridge and surveying the contents. There was only one bag left, so he would just have to have half today and half tomorrow. It would be frustrating, but doable. He pulled the final bag out and opened it as he usually did.

His face went even paler than usual when it smelled the exact same as the blood from before.

_ Fuck _ .

Kenma’s mind began racing. He had no idea what he was going to do. This wasn’t even a matter of not being able to stomach the taste. This wasn’t blood, despite what it might’ve been sold as. Kenma couldn’t drink this even if he wanted to. 

He didn’t even realize he was squeezing the bag until he felt it being pulled from his grip. He looked down to find his hands dripping with the fake blood, and then turned his head to see Bokuto looking at him with concern.

“Is this one no good too?” he asked, holding the bag gently in his hands. Kenma nodded his head and tried to think of what to do. 

He’d never missed a day of drinking before. He’s had to ration, but he at least had something every day. He wasn’t sure what this was going to do to him.

He wasn’t worried too much about going feral. He could, potentially, but he was still too new to be much of a threat. Plus, all the blood he’s had so far has been secondhand. It worked well enough to sustain him, but it didn’t really help him gain much strength.

So he wasn’t too worried about going feral. Bokuto could take him with no problem.

He just wasn’t sure how his own body would react without the blood. He knew he’d get weaker. He knew vampires could die from this, simply starve and waste away. 

But they were supposed to get a new shipment in two days. Surely two days wasn’t enough for that to happen to Kenma.

“Kenma,” Bokuto said, pulling Kenma from his thoughts. He looked strangely serious, and Kenma felt panic rise in his throat, already knowing what he was going to say before Bokuto opened his mouth to say, “Drink from me.”

“No,” Kenma said immediately, shaking his head vehemently. Bokuto frowned, placing the bag on the counter and taking a step towards Kenma. Kenma nearly tripped over his own feet trying to get away from him. “Bokuto, I can’t, you don’t know what you’re asking.”

“Yeah, I do,” Bokuto said, frown shifting into more of a pout. “I’ve done it before.”

Kenma’s mind flashed to Akaashi, and his stomach turned with even more nervous energy. Based on how their relationship was now, he doubted that had gone well.

“It’s too risky,” Kenma said, still backing away from Bokuto until his back met the counter. “I’ve never drank from a person directly, so I don’t know what my reaction will be like.  _ We _ don’t know what my reaction will be like.”

“Never?” Bokuto asked in surprise before he shook his head. “No, wait, that’s not the point. The point is both Akaashi and Kuroo asked me to make sure you were drinking enough, and this is the only way I can keep that promise.”

Kenma narrowed his eyes. He didn’t need Akaashi and Kuroo treating him like a child. “Well there isn’t a way for that to happen now, okay?”

Bokuto did actually pout now. “But there is! Trust me, it’ll be fine. I know what to do if things get too out of hand.”

Kenma thought of Akaashi yet again, and he wanted to ask. Wanted to know what happened between them, if Akaashi had ever bitten Bokuto, if it used to be a regular thing between them and that was the reason Akaashi was so strong now.

If one time it went too far.

Before he could settle on a way to ask any of those questions, Bokuto took one more step towards Kenma - close enough that Kenma was forced to look up at him, but not so close that Kenma couldn’t get away from him if he didn’t want to.

“I’ll ask one more time, and then I’ll stop, I promise,” Bokuto said, sounding more hesitant than Kenma had ever heard him sound before. “But I swear it’s okay! I want to do this. You need the blood, and I don’t want you getting sick or hurt because you didn’t think you could drink from me.”

Bokuto titled his head, bearing his neck, and Kenma felt his mouth water. “So Kenma, do you want to bite my neck?”

Kenma snorted at Bokuto’s phrasing, and Bokuto smiled back at him. He sighed, but he couldn’t deny the hunger that was weighing heavily on him. He let his eyes settle on Bokuto’s neck, and he found it impossible to look away.

“Hold my arms,” Kenma said firmly, and the next moment Bokuto’s hands were coming up to Kenma’s upper arms to clasp them against his side. Like this Bokuto would be able to yank him away with ease. Kenma rose on his toes until he was level with Bokuto’s neck, and the smell of his blood was lingering just below his skin.

It smelled better than any blood bag he’d ever had.

“Are you completely sure?” Kenma asked, even as he felt his fangs elongate on their own behalf. Bokuto didn’t say anything, but just nodded.

Kenma swallowed once before he pressed his lips against Bokuto's neck. He wasn’t sure if it was instinct or something else, but he tilted his head and bit exactly where he knew Bokuto’s vein was.

A lot of things happened in that moment. Bokuto’s grip got just a little tighter on Kenma’s arms. Kenma’s knees went a little weak, and he dipped down just a bit. Bokuto leaned down to accommodate the height difference.

However, Kenma noticed none of that. The only thing he noticed was the taste of Bokuto’s blood.

It tasted  _ sweet _ .

Kenma hadn’t tasted sweet in such a long time. Not one single bag from before had tasted sweet. Not one even came close to how incredible Bokuto’s blood tasted on his tongue. 

Kenma had always had a thing for sweets.

He allowed himself exactly one mouthful before he pulled himself away from Bokuto. Kenma didn’t have a heartbeat but if he did, he was sure it’d be racing. Because that had been good. So good.

Too good.

Bokuto frowned at him. “That can’t have been enough.”

Kenma shook his head at Bokuto, but he was distracted by the small trail of blood he could see spilling from the bite on Bokuto’s next. “I...there’s no way I can safely take anymore. You taste too sweet.”

Bokuto blinked in surprise. “Too sweet?”

The taste still lingered on Kenma’s tongue and he licked at his lips to try and capture any leftover he had. “Yeah. I like sweet. It’s dangerous.”

Bokuto looked conflicted, and Kenma finally managed to tear his eyes away from his neck. He tried to slow his breathing, and in that moment realized how good he felt. It might have only been one mouthful, but Kenma was already feeling better.

Kenma swallowed. This was way too dangerous.

“How about this,” Bokuto said, taking a small step away from Kenma. Kenma released a breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding in. “You take a bite just like this from me a couple times a day!”

“That doesn’t sound safe,” Kenma said with a frown. “Neither of us know how much I can take from you, and how often I should take it.”

“Kenma!” Bokuto whined, looking frustrated with him. “Fine. How about you take it in the morning and at night?”

Kenma considered it. He would only need to do this until the next shipment came in. If it was too much for Bokuto, Kenma was sure he would be able to tell. He seemed fine now, like whatever blood Kenma took from him hadn’t affected him at all. 

Kenma clenched his fist tight. This was  _ dangerous _ .

“Fine,” Kenma found himself saying. Bokuto beamed, looking positively proud of himself, and Kenma couldn’t help the way his lip quirked up at the sight. “But we’re being careful about this. And it’s only until the new shipments come on Saturday.”

“Yeah!” Bokuto said happily. He grabbed Kenma’s wrist and started pulling him out of the kitchen. “Now let’s go play Mario Kart, I think I finally got Rainbow Road down!”

Kenma wondered when Mario Kart became a game he could play for hours, instead of simply the only thing he could play with more than one person. He gave Bokuto an appraising look, until he noticed that Bokuto was still bleeding.

“Bokuto, your neck,” Kenma said drily. He was feeling less hungry, but that didn’t mean the sight of the drying blood wouldn’t fray at his sanity.

“Oh, right.” Bokuto laughed, and started walking down the hall to the bathroom. “You start setting it up, and I’ll be right back.”

Kenma stared after Bokuto and wondered how he could forget about a puncture on his neck so easily.

-

The thing was, there was a sort of intimacy innate to biting into someone’s neck.

Kenma tried not to think much of it when he leaned into Bokuto’s neck that night and traced the path of his veins with his lips. Tried not to think about it the next morning, when Bokuto had suggested they sit so Kenma wouldn’t have to strain so hard to reach him, and their knees touched as they sat facing each other on the couch before Kenma leaned close to bite him. Tried not to think about it the following night when he could feel Bokuto’s pulse racing against his mouth.

He definitely refused to think about how drinking from Bokuto made him feel. How the taste of his blood sweet against his tongue made him nearly whimper. How it filled him with more energy than he’d ever had, even as a human. How that energy thrumming through him had him staring at Bokuto longer, lingering just a little closer.

This was dangerous. Kenma was excited.

-

He pushed things further the next morning.

“Does it hurt when I bite you?” Kenma asked as he pulled away from Bokuto and settled back on his spot on the couch. It would be the last time he drank from him in the foreseeable future, and he’d lingered perhaps a little longer than before. 

Bokuto looked down at Kenma with a confused expression on his face, eyes just a little cloudy. “Hurt? No, not really? There’s this sort of pinch, but that’s it.”

Kenma hummed, and stared steadily at Bokuto. “I asked because you hold my arms a little tighter while I’m drinking.” Bokuto’s went wide, looking immediately apologetic, and Kenma quickly clarified. “Don’t worry, it’s not enough to hurt. Just enough to feel it.”

Bokuto blushed then, and Kenma found himself absolutely fascinated with it. Part of him was interested in the blood rushing to his skin, but another part of him had a very different reaction to the sight.

“It feels...sort of nice,” Bokuto said. Kenma blinked. He wasn’t expecting Bokuto to actually reply to him. Bokuto looked at Kenma before glancing away sheepishly. “Like, really nice. But I didn’t realize I was doing that, so I can stop.”

“You don’t have to stop,” Kenma said, feeling just a little bolder. He wondered if that came with being a vampire as well. “I like it. It’s...grounding.”

Grounding wasn’t the first word he would use, but it got the job done. Bokuto was practically red all over, and he looked at Kenma speechless. 

Kenma titled his head to hide the smirk on his face, and turned fully to face the television. “Did you want to watch something while we wait for the delivery to come?”

Bokuto immediately perked up. “Does this mean you’re letting me choose?”

“We’re not watching the owl documentary.”

They ended up settling on an old horror movie that Kenma had seen before, and that Bokuto was incredibly confused by. He asked about the plot holes and strange rules, and Kenma shrugged and told him that was just something that came up with movies like those.

Bokuto then started asking what Kenma thought the different characters blood would taste like, eliciting a small laugh from Kenma before he decided to humor Bokuto.

The tension was still there, blanketing them, but they’d gotten used to it. It was no different than the past two days have been. It wouldn’t be an issue.

Until the delivery never came.

Kenma had watched as the clock ticked past the time it had come last week and tried to shrug it off. Akaashi hadn’t told him a specific time, and he had no reason to believe a ‘business’ like that actually valued consistency. 

However, as the hours continued to pass without that telltale knock on the door, part of Kenma began to worry. It was good and well to take a little from Bokuto for a few days. It was a whole other thing for him to continue drinking from him until Kuroo and Akaashi got back. It shouldn’t be more than a week, but who knew what sort of trouble they could’ve run into.

When the sun set for the evening, and the delivery still hadn’t come, Kenma felt his nerves start to settle in his stomach. But there was another part of him that was excited. 

Because this meant that he could continue to drink from Bokuto.

_ If Bokuto offered _ , he reminded himself sharply. He couldn’t take advantage of the fact that Bokuto had been so generous these past couple of days. If he decided enough was enough, then Kenma would just have to figure something else out.

“So, I guess we’re keeping this up.” Kenma was jolted from his thoughts as Bokuto plopped on the couch next to him. Kenma looked at him hesitantly, not wanting to jump to any conclusion and Bokuto grinned back. “You gotta keep drinking since the delivery didn’t come, right?”

“Only if you’re okay with it,” Kenma said but he was already turning to face Bokuto, tucking his legs under himself as he faced him fully.

Bokuto turned to face Kenma as well, pulling one knee on the couch and letting his other leg hang off the side. “Yeah, of course,” he said, a smile still on his face. “I’m not gonna let you starve.”

Kenma didn’t need more than that. The moment Bokuto’s hands came up to hold his arms, Kenma was leaning forward. He nosed at Bokuto’s neck, letting himself savor the scent of him before his teeth slowly elongated. He couldn’t control when they did, but at least now he was better at the speed.

He pressed his fangs into Bokuto's neck, but not enough to pierce the skin. He caught the way Bokuto’s breath caught in his throat, and then he was biting him a moment later. 

Bokuto’s grip tightened on his arms harder than they ever had before. 

Kenma let the blood flow into his mouth, making sure not to take more than a mouthful, but allowing himself to hum at the taste of it. This close, he could hear the aborted noise Bokuto made in the back of his throat.

Kenma swallowed, and then pulled his fangs out of Bokuto’s neck. But he didn’t pull away. Instead he let himself hover, lips only an inch from Bokuto’s neck. He let himself lick at the trail of blood that Bokuto always let linger on fucking his neck. 

“Kenma,” Bokuto breathed, and Kenma dropped his lips to just below the puncture wound, and sucked a mark into his skin. Bokuto’s grip on him tightened again, before he was releasing Kenma’s arms to grab at his waist. Kenma continued peppering kisses up Bokuto’s neck, wishing he could will his fangs away so he could bite Bokuto again and get him to say his name like he had before.

“Kenma,” Bokuto said again before he tugged Kenma closer to him. Kenma caught himself on Bokuto’s chest, his hands pressed against his chest and his thighs straddling his lap. He barely had a moment to right himself before Bokuto was pressing his lips against his, gently, but insistently. 

Kenma’s eyes fluttered shut, and he kissed Bokuto back as carefully as he could. Bokuto brought a hand up to Kenma’s jaw, tilting it before pressing his thumb into the side. Kenma’s mouth opened just a touch and he relaxed into the next kiss. Moments later, his teeth were retracting to normal. Kenma took a moment to savour that, kissing Bokuto deeply and licking into his mouth. He wondered if he tasted of blood and if Bokuto was bothered by it. 

The way he seemed like he was trying to pull Kenma even closer made it seem like he wasn’t. He indulged himself for just a moment longer before Kenma pulled away with a gasp of air. 

“You knew that would work,” he panted, digging his nails into Bokuto’s shoulder as he grazed his lips over Kenma’s neck. Bokuto hummed in question, and Kenma took a shuddering breath before he clarified. “With my fangs. You knew relaxing my jaw would help them go away.”

Bokuto paused, and Kenma had to fight the urge to grab the back of his head and press his face further into his neck. Bokuto pulled back enough so that he could look Kenma in the eyes, and Kenma tried not to get distracted by how blown his pupils looked. “Yeah,” he rasped. “We can talk about that, if you want.”

Kenma considered Bokuto. Considered the hand that was now on his hip and the other that had crept into his hair. Considered the way his chest was heaving and his pulse was racing. Considered how warm he felt beneath him and how his eyes remained locked on Kenma.

This time Kenma didn’t hold back as he slid his hand from Bokuto shoulder to the back of his hair to pull just enough to tilt Bokuto’s head back. 

“We can talk later,” Kenma said before he bit the side of Bokuto’s neck. Bokuto’s answering groan was almost as sweet as his blood.

-

Kenma woke up feeling groggy, but incredibly sated. He also woke up on a bed that wasn’t his own.

“I thought vampires didn’t have to sleep.” Kenma rolled over to see Bokuto resting his head on his arms and looking at Kenma with a sleepy smile. “I kinda thought I was going to wake up to you staring at me or something.”

Kenma rolled his eyes. “We don’t technically have to but it’s nice, sometimes. Especially after,” Kenma paused for a moment. “Tiring nights.”

Bokuto grinned, one part proud and one part smug, and Kenma wanted to kick him for it but he restrained himself.

Kenma did bring his feet up to press against Bokuto’s shin.

“Kenma! Cold!” Bokuto exclaimed, pulling Kenma in closer to try and tangle their legs together - all while Kenma smirked smugly at him. Kenma was caught off guard when Bokuto rolled them over, Bokuto landing on his back with Kenma frozen on top of him like a cat in shock.

Bokuto took his sweet time laughing at him.

“You know, I wasn’t planning on going to the colony with you guys,” Bokuto said after his laughter died down. Kenma looked up, bringing his arms up so he could rest his chin against them and meet Bokuto’s gaze properly. Bokuto continued as he played with Kenma’s hair. “Things between me and Akaashi have been weird for a while, and I knew Kuroo would go for you. So I was just gonna stay behind by myself.”

Kenma frowned at the thought. It didn’t seem right to him that Bokuto be alone. “What exactly happened between you and Akaashi?” Kenma asked slowly. 

Bokuto looked up at the ceiling. “I used to let Akaashi drink from me lots. He was new to being a vampire, and didn’t know anything about blood bags or anything so I just let him take from me. And it was fine, he never took too much or anything.” Bokuto paused, and Kenma pressed a small kiss against his chest in encouragement. Bokuto didn’t look down at him, but Kenma saw the way he smiled. “One day though, when Akaashi went to drink from me, something...happened. I don’t know what, but apparently the taste had changed and Akaashi had a really bad reaction.” 

Bokuto frowned now, looking more upset then Kenma had ever seen him. “I tried getting close to him to see what was wrong, but Akaashi lashed out. He’d been drinking from me for a while so he’d gotten pretty strong and almost threw me across the room.”

Kenma’s eyes went wide. He’d known about Akaashi speed. He’d had no idea about Akaashi’s strength.

“I was fine though,” Bokuto said with a small pout. “A couple of bruises, but that was it! But Akaashi had felt so bad, and he refused to drink from me! Except he didn’t know anyone else! So I tried talking to him, and we got in a huge fight, and the next day there were the blood bags in the fridge.”

“I mean, we’re still friends, I guess,” Bokuto shrugged - as well as he could laying on his back with Kenma on his chest. “But nothing has ever been the same since then.”

Kenma stared at Bokuto for a long time. “Bokuto,” he said, waiting for him to look back down at him. “That’s the dumbest reason I’ve ever heard for two people getting in a fight.”

Bokuto gaped at Kenma, but he continued anyway. “You two clearly care about each other. You wouldn’t have fought in the first place if you didn’t. So just sit him down, talk it out, and get over it.”

Bokuto laughed, loudly and happily. He wrapped his arms around Kenma and squeezed him so tight Kenma’s cheek was pressed against his chest. “You make it sound so easy!”

“It is so easy,” Kenma replied, though his words came in slurred. He pushed back a bit, and Boktuo acquiesced before pulling Kenma further up his body until he’s able to rest his chin against Kenma’s head. 

“I like you,” Bokuto said quietly, and regardless of the impossibility of it, Kenma swore his heart skipped a beat.

“I like you too,” Kenma murmured against his neck. 

Bokuto made a pleased little noise, and Kenma smiled.

-

A week later, Kenma was sitting on the couch with his legs across Bokuto’s lap when the front door to the apartment opened. Both he and Bokuto immediately sat up to see Kuroo and Akaashi walk through, looking rougher than when they’d left, but healthy overall.

“You’re back!” Bokuto exclaimed, hopping off the couch to launch himself at Kuroo, and trap him in a hug. Kenma smiled softly at them, before carefully getting off the couch himself. He waited until Bokuto and Kuroo had their moment before stepping up to hug Kuroo for the first time in over a month.

One additional good thing about spending these past couple of weeks with Bokuto was that Kenma learned he had more self-control than he’d feared. Sure, the smell of blood was enough to distract him, but he wasn’t an animal. He was still Kenma.

“Oh,” Kuroo breathed softly before he was pulling Kenma close to him. Kuroo laughed a little in disbelief. “Well this is a pleasant surprise. Almost makes the last two weeks worth it.”

Kenma pulled back with frown, and turned to look questioningly at Akaashi.

“We found the colony.” Akaashi said stiffly, pointedly avoiding looking at Kuroo. “Nearly died for it, but - ”

“Jesus Christ,” Kuroo grumbled, pulling Kenma against him again. “Are we still having that conversation? Because in case you can’t see, we’re currently home - safe and sound.”

Kenma looked between the two of them, and he frowned at the animosity he saw in both their eyes. Things had somehow gotten even worse between them during the trip.

“And you found the colony!” Bokuto reminded them, coming up to clasp a hand on Kuroo and Akaashi’s shoulders. “That means we can call head out together as soon as Kenma feels up to it!”

Akaashi and Kuroo stilled.

“We?” Akaashi repeated softly, and Kenma caught the hope in his voice.

“You’re coming with us?” Kuroo asked with a huge smile on his face. “You changed your mind? You’re really coming with us?”

“Yeah, I think I am,” Bokuto said with a smile. Kuroo pulled him into his hug with Kenma, and Kenma almost yelped as he was nearly sandwiched between the two of them. He yanked himself away from them, and tried not to glare too much at them for their lack of foresight.

Kenma turned to look at Akaashi, prepared to share a bemused look with him, but Akaashi was still looking at Bokuto and Kuroo with a soft look in his eyes. Kenma remembered what Akaashi said before about spending years virtually alone, and found himself going soft as well. 

Life wasn’t going to be perfect, and they all had a lot of things they still had to work on. But them, all four of them, would have each other. And for Kenma, that was more than enough.

**Author's Note:**

> yes, i used a lyric from supermassive black hole - as made popular by the twilight soundtrack - for the title of this fic, and what about it?
> 
> feel free to come chat with me on [twitter](https://twitter.com/neenswrites) abt kenma ships and bokuken and bokuakuroken and all ur vampire aus
> 
> (and feel free to follow my nsfw [twitter](https://twitter.com/neenstries) but i will block anyone who follows who is a minor/doesnt have their age in their bio!!!!!!)


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